Refrigerator assembly



July 18, 1950 e. c. EARLE REFRIGERATOR ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 11. 1945 INVENTOR 60mm A 6'. E4245 (21 I ATTORNEY July 18, 1950 Filed Aug. 11, 1945 G. L. c. EARLE REFRIGERATOR ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 JNVENTOR. 6UXO/V 1.. 6.51245 Bywsdq A T TOENE Y Patented July 18, 1950 H I 2,515,766 REF IGERATOR ASSEMBLY Guyon L. 9C.- Earle, Forest Hills, N. Y., assignor,

- byfmesne assignments, to Earle Kitchen Unit Corporation, NewYork, N. Y., a corporation of .NewYork '1 ."lgApplicationAugust i 1945, Serial No. 610,317

l Claims.

This invention relates primarily to refrigera-j tors and more specifically, although notnecessarily, to refrigerators of the type having a sealed operating unit and to their assembly.

Many refrigerators being manufactured today are of the type which employs a sealed operating unit. Such a unit usually comprises an evaporator and cold control element, a compressorcondenser element, and various tubes and electrical connections between these two elements or bet-ween one or both of them and a source of power. the refrigerator in theusers kitchen and also because of the use of insufficiently skilled personnel for this purpose, the refrigerant is placed in the operating unit at the factory and all the connections between the two elements are sealed. It has been found difficult to assemble such a sealed refrigerator operating unit in refrigerators of the two-part type such as, for example, the set-back refrigerator disclosed in Patent 2,312,326 issued March 2, 1943, to Guyon L. C. Earle The present invention, inan important aspect thereof, relates to means for assembling two-part refrigerators of the type employing sealed operating units and the construction of such refrigerators but other aspects of the invention will be readily apparent from the description below.

It is an object of this invention to provide improved means for assembling refrigerators having upper and lower portions and employing an operating unit of a refrigerator a portion of which is located inside the refrigerator and the rest outside it. i

It is another object of this invention to proor guide member for tubes and connections such as, for example, of the operating unit of a refrigerator.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a novel combined gasket and channel or guide member for the tubes and connections used with the various elements of a refrigerator sealed operating unit which can be attached to the evaporator-cold control element of the op- In order to save time in setting upv 2 v crating unit before the refrigerator is finally assembled.

In accordance with a specific embodiment of the present invention, described by way of ex-- ample for purposes of illustration, there is provided a novel refrigerator of the set-back type, that is; one having an upper insulated refrigerated portion and a lower insulated refrigerated portion, the front plane of the upper portion being set back from the front plane of the lower portion, and a table-top member placed in front of the upper portion and on top of the lower portion. This refrigerator employs a refrigerator operating unit of the sealed, type, the evaporator and cold control element or unit being placed in the upper portion of the refrigerator and the compressor-condenser element or unit being placed outside the refrigerator preferably at the side of the lower portion thereof. At the upper part of the lower portion across the opening at the top thereof are placed two supporting'members in accordance with the invention to hold the evaporator-co1d control unit in position beforethe upper portion of the refrigerator is fastened in place. Means are also provided for fastening the evaporator to the upper portion after the latter has been placed in position over the opening in the top of the lower portion of the refrigerator. Various pairs of bracket members, at least one pair on each side, are provided for squeezing the gasketing between the two portions of the refrigerator and thus preventing air from getting into the interior thereof. One of each pair is fastened to the upper portion and the other one of each pair is joined to the lower portion. Bolts with wing nuts therefor are used to squeeze the bracket members of each pair together. The gasketing material between the two portions includes or surrounds a novel protecting member in accordance with the invention which is a combined channel or guide member and gasket for the various tubes and connections between the portion ofthe operating unit located inside the two-part refrigerator and the portion located outside it-and to a source of power. Other novel features of the refrigerator in accordance with this invention will be apparent from the description below and from the claims appended thereto.

The invention will be more readily understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part thereof, in which:

Fig, 1 is a perspective view of the lower nortion of a two-part "set-back refrigerator and of a cabinet adjacent thereto, the evaporator unit of the refrigerator being shown in the position it occupies during transportation of the refrigerator prior to final assembly thereof;

Fig. 2 is a perspective View of the apparatus of Fig. 1 with the evaporator unit and the protecting member beingshown in the positions they respectively occupy during one step of the assembly operation;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a protecting member in accordance with this invention;

Fig. 4 is a partially exploded perspective view of the member shown in Fig, 3;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the lowerportion of the right hand member in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 illustrates one manner in which they protecting member can be attached to the evaporator;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of the lower portion of the refrigerator of Fig. 1 showing means for temporarily supporting the evaporator during the assembly process and the lower ones of two pairs of brackets for holding together the upperand lower portions of therefrigerator;

Fig. '8 is-aperspective view, with portions broken away, of the upper ,portion ofthe refrigerator andof a part of the lower portion thereof after these two portions .are joined together; and

Fig. 9 .is afragmentary front elevation view of the refrigerator withportions broken away to show a, part of the interiorthereof.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, Figs. .1 and '2 show, by way of example for illustrative purposes, the lower portion of a refrigerator 9 of the -fset-back type and of a cabinet adjacent thereto. .The upper portion .40 of the refrigerator 9 is shown in Figs. 8,,and -9. Reference is made/to the following patents-of Guyon L. C. Earle which show both upper and lower portions of refrigerators of the islet-back type: 2,180,460 issued .March .14, l939,,2,3l;2,3 26 issued Maroh2, 11943, and 2,328,130 issued'..Augu St 31,1943. The lower portion 10 contains 2.. Blurality-of drawers ll, l2, l3 and I4 for storin food or;oth er articles to be refrigerated. Theupper portion .40 includes .theevaporator :l9.,.ice cube trays. 50 and shelves 5!. Doors. 52. and-.53:.ser.v6 as closuremembers. Above the lower portion of the refrigerator and in. front .of the upper portion 40 thereof a-tabletop=member I5 is provided while at the side of :the refrigerator is a, cabinet member 16 within which is supported the compressorcondenserelement I] of a sealed re ri erator oper-ating unit :18. The unit 18 also includes the evaporator-cold control element I9 and. various connections and tubes 20 betwe n the inside. of the refrigerator and the outside thereof. In Fig. l, the element i9 has been shown in the .DDSition it occupies duringtransportation, it, being fastened to a rack or .by other meansat the; rear of the cabinet section it, andin Fig. 2:.ithas been shown in the position it occupies during therstep in the assembly process just before the u per portion 4!} of the refrigerator is-fastened to the lower portion it. During this step. it restsontwo supporting members ti and :42 connected for example, between the back of the lower portion i0 and the underside of the top covering thereof across the opening 34 in the top of the lower portion Ill. Of course, other.forms of supporting members or supporting members. of thiset ype positioned in different locations oanbe used, if desired. 1

Surrounding the tubes and connection 2t,

4 which for example, include (see Fig. 6) an electrical connection 2| to the cold control 24, a capillary tube 22 to the high side of the evaporator and a large tube 23 to the low side thereof, is a gasketing or protecting member 25 in accordance with one aspect of this invention. This protecting member comprises upper and lower members 26 and 21 which may be resilient or non-resilient and a resilient collar member 28 sheathing one end of each of the members 26 and 21. If desired the member 28 can be non-resilient. The lower member 21, as shown in Fig. 5, has grooves 29in the upper and right hand surfaces thereof of the proper size to provide channels for the lower. half ofv each of the tubes or connections 20 while the inside surfaces of the L-shaped member 26 is correspondingly grooved to provide, as shown in Fig. 6, channels for the upper half of each of the tubes and connections 20. A plate 30 is attached to the members 26 and 2'! and helps to-holdthese two members together. Holes through which. the connections .or tubes 20, pass are provided in the plate. 30. The resilient cap or collar 28 can be made in one piece, of soft rubber orsimilar material, with a slit 3| therein which .can be vulcanized or otherwise sealed after the collar is slipped over the members 26 and 2] which may be bolted together. The plate 36 can be. dispensed with, if desired. It can be made .of .two parts if it is desired to fasten it to the protecting member after the tubes and connections 2.0 have been fastened to the elements of theoperating unit [8. The collar 28 can be made .without the slit 3| and slipped over the members 26 and 21 if the tubes or connections 20 have not yet been fastened to the elements of the unit [8.

- In assembling the refrigerator, the evaporator ISislifted to the. position shown in Fig. 2 where it rests onthe members ill and 42 and where the collar. 28 fits into a prefabricated groove or slot 32 (see Fig. ,1)-.in the vertical wall 33 of the lower portion of the refrigerator. .If desiredthe groove or slot 32 can be ,in the upper portion of the refrigerator instead ,of the lower portion or it can be made of two grooves each half as deep and a portion thereof cut in each of the two portions of the refrigerator. The groove 32, in any event, is just the size for a snug fit of the .collar 28 which prevents any. cold from getting out of the refrigerator. If they are not already in place, the lower bracket-member 43 (on the left side) .and the members 44 (on the right side), the latter in front of and behind the groove 32, respectively, are fastened to the lower portion ID. ,The member 3 is insidethe member if 0 (where it will notshow) and themembers M are outside the refrigerator (where they can .be easily reached but will also not show because they are in the cabinet member (6). Then the upper portion 40 of the refrigerator is placed over the .top ope-ningdi l of thelower portion ll) of the refrigerator with proper gasketing 46 between the .two portions. The evaporator i9 is fastened to theinside of the upper portion 40' by means of screws passing through holes GT into the walls of the upper portion. If desired it may still rest on the members 4! and 142 if theposition of the holes 41 is properly chosen. The upper bracket members 48 and 49 are tightly connected to thecorresponding membBlSi 43 and Mby turningthe wing nuts 45, thus tightly squeezing the gasketing 46 and the protecting member 25, holding it tightly within the groove 32 and ensuring an air-and-moisture tight insulated enclosure. The bracket members are easily accessible if it is desired to later disassemble the refrigerator. Moreover, the evaporator can be easily removed by unscrewing the bolts after the racks and ice cube trays 50 have been taken out.

Various obvious changes other than those specifically mentioned will occur to those skilled in the art and it is intended that all such changes which fall within the scope of the appended claims he covered thereby.

What is claimed is:

1. A mechanical refrigerator comprising a lower insulated portion and an upper insulated portion having a smaller dimension from front to rear than said lower portion, resilient gasketing between the members, and bolting means, one inside and one outside the refrigerator, for fastening the upper portion to the lower portion and for tightly squeezing said gasketing to ensure an air-and-moisture tight joint, said gasketing including a protecting member for tubes passing into said refrigerator from the outside thereof.

2. A mechanical refrigerator comprising upper and lower insulated portions each having vertical walls, said upper portion including a vertical wall which is substantially in the same plane as one of thevertical walls of said lower portion, one of said vertical walls having a groove therethrough at the edge thereof adjacent said vertical wall of said other portion, a refrigerator operating mechanism including an evaporator unit, a compressor-condenser unit and connections between the units, means for mounting said evaporator unit inside said refrigerator and said compressorcondenser unit on the outside thereof in such position that said connections pass through said groove, and a protecting member encircling said connections as they pass through said groove, said protecting member comprising two nonresilient members having grooves therein in the surfaces touching each other so as to form airtight conduits for said connections.

3. A mechanical refrigerator comprising upper and lower insulated portions each having vertical walls, said upper portions including a vertical wall which is substantially in the same plane as one of the vertical walls of said lower portion, one of said vertical walls having a groove therethrough at the edge thereof adjacent said vertical wall of said other portion, a refrigerator operating mechanism including an evaporator unit, a compressor-condenser unit and fluid connections between the units, means for mounting said evaporator unit inside said refrigerator and said compressor-condenser unit on the outside thereof in such position that said connections pass through said groove, and a protecting member encircling said connections as they pass through said groove, said protecting member comprising two members having grooves therein in the surfaces touching each other so as to form conduits for said connections, and an element of resilient material surrounding the end of each of said two members nearer the evaporator and in contact with said groove in the wall, said two members being shaped so that one nests within the other and so that the conduits are bent.

4. A mechanical refrigerator comprising upper and lower insulated portions each having vertical walls, said upper portion including a vertical wall which is substantially in the same plane as one of the vertical walls of said lower portion, one of said vertical walls having a groove therethrough at the edge thereof adjacent said vertical wall of said other portion, a refrigerator operating mechanism including an evaporator unit, a compressor-condenser unit and fluid connections between the units, means for mounting said evaporator unit inside said refrigerator and said compressor-condenser unit on the outside thereof in such position that said connections pass through said groove, and a protecting member encircling said connections as they pass through said groove, said protecting member comprising two members having grooves therein in the surfaces touching each other so as to form conduits for said connections, and means for securing said protection member to said evaporator.

5. A mechanical refrigerator comprising upper and lower insulated portions each having vertical walls, said upper portion including a vertical wall which is substantially in the same plane as one of the vertical walls of said lower portion, one of said vertical walls having a groove therethrough at the edge thereof adjacent said vertical wall of said other portion, a refrigerator operating mechanism including an evaporator unit, a compressor-condenser unit and fluid connections between the units, means for mounting said evaporator unit inside said refrigerator and said compressor-condenser unit on the outside thereof in such position that said connections pass through said groove, and a gasket member encircling said connections as they pass through said groove, said gasket member comprising two members having grooves therein in the surfaces touching each other as to form conduits for said connections, means for securing said protection member to said evaporator, and bracket means for fastening the upper portion and the lower portion of the refrigerator together in such a way that the gasket member is squeezed to make a tight fit.

G. L. C. EARLE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,730,494 Dyer Oct. 8, 1929 1,735,495 Dennison Nov. 12, 1929 1,830,060 Holbrook Nov. 3, 1931 2,312,326 Earle Mar. 2, 1943 2,328,130 Earle Aug. 31, 1943 2,337,058 McKee Dec. 21, 1943 2,400,634 Earle May 21, 1946 2,405,904 Rataiczak Aug. 13, 1946 

